Engineering aortic valves via transdifferentiating fibroblasts into valvular endothelial cells without using viruses or iPS cells.

The technology of induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) has enabled the conversion of somatic cells into primitive undifferentiated cells via reprogramming. This approach provides possibilities for cell replacement therapies and drug screening, but the potential risk of tumorigenesis hampers its further development and application. How to generate differentiated cells such as valvular endothelial cells (VECs) has remained a major challenge.

A multifunctional cascade gas-nanoreactor with MnO as a gatekeeper to enhance starvation therapy and provoke antitumor immune response.

Glucose oxidase (GOx)-mediated starvation therapy is an effective tumor treatment that blocks energy and activates the immune response. However, the insufficient tumor immunogenicity and immunosuppressive tumor microenvironment (TME) limited its therapeutic efficacy. To address this, we have designed a multifunctional cascade gas-nanoreactor with a MnO coating, which serves as an out gatekeeper to encapsulate both GOx and a carbon monoxide (CO) donor (denoted as GCM).

Effects of different ratios of glycerol to erythritol on the structure and properties of starch straws during long term storage.

To explore starch straws with low water absorption rate (WAR) and not prone to brittleness during long term storage. Glycerol and erythritol were used as composite plasticizers to explore their effects on the structure of starch straws. The results showed that G:E (60:40) had the lowest bending force (Fb = 12.

A clinically feasible algorithm for the parallel detection of glioma-associated copy number variation markers based on shallow whole genome sequencing.

Molecular features are incorporated into the integrated diagnostic system for adult diffuse gliomas. Of these, copy number variation (CNV) markers, including both arm-level (1p/19q codeletion, +7/-10 signature) and gene-level (EGFR gene amplification, CDKN2A/B homozygous deletion) changes, have revolutionized the diagnostic paradigm by updating the subtyping and grading schemes. Shallow whole genome sequencing (sWGS) has been widely used for CNV detection due to its cost-effectiveness and versatility.

Prevalence and impact of metabolic associated fatty liver disease in non-metastatic breast cancer women at initial diagnosis: a cross-sectional study in China.

Purpose: The epidemiologic data of metabolic associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) in breast cancer (BC) patients remains limited. We aimed to investigate the prevalence and clinicopathological characteristics of hepatic steatosis (HS) and MAFLD in Chinese BC women at initial diagnosis.

Methods: 3217 non-metastatic primary BC women with MAFLD evaluation indexes at initial diagnosis and 32,170 age-matched (in a 1:10 ratio) contemporaneous health check-up women were enrolled.

Root Endophyte-Manipulated Alteration in Rhizodeposits Stimulates in the Rhizosphere to Enhance Drought Resistance in Peanut.

Drought dramatically affects plant growth and yield. A previous study indicated that endophytic fungus can improve the drought resistance of peanuts, which is related with the root arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) community; however, how root endophytes mediate AMF assembly to affect plant drought resistance remains unclear. Here, we explored the mechanism by which endophytic fungus recruits AMF symbiotic partners via rhizodeposits to improve host drought resistance.

Iodine-induced self-depassivation strategy to improve reversible kinetics in Na-Cl battery.

Rechargeable sodium-chlorine (Na-Cl) batteries show high theoretical specific energy density and excellent adaptability for extreme environmental applications. However, the reported cycle life is mostly less than 500 cycles, and the understanding of battery failure mechanisms is quite limited. In this work, we demonstrate that the substantially increased voltage polarization plays a critical role in the battery failure.

Cross-sectional study of hepatitis B virus infection in female breast cancer patients in China for the first time diagnosed.

Background: The correlation between breast cancer and hepatitis B virus (HBV) remains inconclusive. This study aims to explore the serological status of HBV infection and past infection in different age groups of female breast cancer patients, patients with benign breast diseases, and individuals undergoing routine physical examinations.

Methods: Serum data on HBV serological markers were collected and analyzed from 6072 female breast cancer patients first diagnosed from September 2012 to July 2020 at the First Affiliated Hospital of Chongqing Medical University, along with 4019 women with benign breast diseases and 54,740 healthy females undergoing routine physical examinations in the same period.

Optimal Glycated Hemoglobin Cutoff for Diagnosis of Diabetes and Prediabetes in Chinese Breast Cancer Women.

Purpose: Glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c) is widely used in diabetes management and now recommended for diagnosis and risk assessment. Our research focused on investigating the optimal cutoff points of HbA1c for diagnosis of diabetes and prediabetes in Chinese breast cancer women, aiming to enhance early detection and tailor treatment strategies.

Patients And Methods: This study involved 309 breast cancer women without diabetes history in China.

Depletion of protective microbiota promotes the incidence of fruit disease.

Plant-associated microbiomes play important roles in plant health and productivity. However, despite fruits being directly linked to plant productivity, little is known about the microbiomes of fruits and their potential association with fruit health. Here, by integrating 16S rRNA gene, ITS high-throughput sequencing data, and microbiological culturable approaches, we reported that roots and fruits (pods) of peanut, a typical plant that bears fruits underground, recruit different bacterial and fungal communities independently of cropping conditions and that the incidence of pod disease under monocropping conditions is attributed to the depletion of Bacillus genus and enrichment of Aspergillus genus in geocarposphere.

Prevalence and risk factors of thyroid nodules in breast cancer women with different clinicopathological characteristics: a cross-sectional study.

Background: Association between breast cancer (BC) and thyroid nodules (TNs) is still unclear. This research was to estimate the prevalence and risk factors of TN in Chinese BC women at initial diagnosis.

Methods: 1731 Chinese early-stage BC women at initial diagnosis underwent thyroid ultrasound and 1:1 age-matched Chinese healthy women underwent health examination in corresponding period were enrolled for analysis.

Seed-borne bacterial synthetic community resists seed pathogenic fungi and promotes plant growth.

Aims: In this study, the control effects of synthetic microbial communities composed of peanut seed bacteria against seed aflatoxin contamination caused by Aspergillus flavus and root rot by Fusarium oxysporum were evaluated.

Methods And Results: Potentially conserved microbial synthetic communities (C), growth-promoting synthetic communities (S), and combined synthetic communities (CS) of peanut seeds were constructed after 16S rRNA Illumina sequencing, strain isolation, and measurement of plant growth promotion indicators. Three synthetic communities showed resistance to root rot and CS had the best effect after inoculating into peanut seedlings.

Structural and functional basis of bacteriophage K64-ORF41 depolymerase for capsular polysaccharide degradation of Klebsiella pneumoniae K64.

Capsule polysaccharide is an important virulence factor of Klebsiella pneumoniae (K. pneumoniae), which protects bacteria against the host immune response. A promising therapeutic approach is using phage-derived depolymerases to degrade the capsular polysaccharide and expose and sensitize the bacteria to the host immune system.

Vertical-Channel Cathode Host Enables Rapid Deposition Kinetics toward High-Areal-Capacity Sodium-Chlorine Batteries.

Rechargeable sodium chloride (Na-Cl) batteries have emerged as promising alternatives for next-generation energy storage due to their superior energy density and sodium abundance. However, their practical applications are hindered by the sluggish chlorine cathode kinetics related to the aggregation of NaCl and its difficult transformation into Cl. Herein, the study, for the first time from the perspective of electrode level in Na-Cl batteries, proposes a free-standing carbon cathode host with customized vertical channels to facilitate the SOCl transport and regulate the NaCl deposition.

Root endophyte-mediated alteration in plant H2O2 homeostasis regulates symbiosis outcome and reshapes the rhizosphere microbiota.

Endophytic symbioses between plants and fungi are a dominant feature of many terrestrial ecosystems, yet little is known about the signaling that defines these symbiotic associations. Hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) is recognized as a key signal mediating the plant adaptive response to both biotic and abiotic stresses. However, the role of H2O2 in plant-fungal symbiosis remains elusive.

Comparative analysis of population growth and women employment patterns in agriculture and service sectors: Evidence from China and India.

This study uses a comparative approach to investigate population growth patterns and women employment in two strategic sectors of China and India from 2005 to 2021. Consequently, a descriptive statistic was used to estimate the performance of each of the variables of interest. The results showed that the average mean value of population growth rate in China is 0.

Raman spectroscopy-based prediction of ofloxacin concentration in solution using a novel loss function and an improved GA-CNN model.

Background: A Raman spectroscopy method can quickly and accurately measure the concentration of ofloxacin in solution. This method has the advantages of accuracy and rapidity over traditional detection methods. However, the manual analysis methods for the collected Raman spectral data often ignore the nonlinear characteristics of the data and cannot accurately predict the concentration of the target sample.

Beyond liver cancer, more application scenarios for alpha-fetoprotein in clinical practice.

Alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) is a commonly used clinical biomarker. Before 1970, the two-way agar diffusion method was mainly used, and the specificity of AFP in the diagnosis of primary liver cancer was satisfactory. However, its positivity rate was not very high.

Fungal endophyte promotes plant growth and disease resistance of Arachis hypogaea L. by reshaping the core root microbiome under monocropping conditions.

Fungal endophytes play critical roles in helping plants adapt to adverse environmental conditions. The root endophyte Phomopsis liquidambaris can promote the growth and disease control of peanut plants grown under monocropping systems; however, how such beneficial traits are produced is largely unknown. Since the plant endophytic microbiome is directly linked to plant growth and health, and the composition of which has been found to be potentially influenced by microbial inoculants, this study aims to clarify the roles of root endophytic bacterial communities in P.

Effects of polyols with different hydroxyl numbers on the structure and properties of starch straws.

To study the relationship between the number of hydroxyl groups of polyols and the plasticizing effect, the effects of different polyols including ethylene glycol, glycerol, erythritol, xylitol and sorbitol on the structure and properties of corn starch straws were analyzed and compared. The results showed that the addition of plasticizer significantly improved the performance of starch straws, which greatly improved the mechanical properties, water absorption rate (WAR) and thermal stability. However, there was no linear relationship between the plasticizing effect on starch straws and the number of hydroxyl groups in plasticizers.

Effect of chemotherapy and different chemotherapy regimens on bone health among Chinese breast cancer women in different menstrual status: a self-control study.

Purpose: Although the therapy-related bone loss attracts increasing attention nowadays, the differences in chemotherapy-induced bone loss and bone metabolism indexes change among breast cancer (BC) women with different menstrual statuses or chemotherapy regimens are unknown. The aim of the study is to explore the effects of different regimens of chemotherapy on bone health.

Method: The self-control study enrolled 118 initially diagnosed BC women without distant metastasis who underwent dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry (DXA) bone mineral density (BMD) screening and (or) bone metabolism index monitoring during chemotherapy at Chongqing Breast Cancer Center.

Hyphosphere microorganisms facilitate hyphal spreading and root colonization of plant symbiotic fungus in ammonium-enriched soil.

Anthropogenic nitrogen inputs lead to a high ammonium (NH)/nitrate (NO) ratio in the soil, which restricts hyphal spreading of soil fungi. Access of symbiotic fungi to roots is a prerequisite for plant-fungal interactions. Hyphosphere bacteria protect fungi from environmental stress, yet the impact of hyphosphere bacteria on adaptation of host fungi to NH-enriched conditions remains unclear.

Effects of different ratios of mannitol to sorbitol on the functional properties of sweet potato starch films.

Sorbitol as a plasticizer is easily crystallized from starch film, resulting in the reduction in plasticizing effect. To improve the plasticizing performance of sorbitol in starch films, mannitol, an acyclic hexahydroxy sugar alcohol, was used to cooperate with sorbitol. The effects of different ratios of mannitol (M) to sorbitol (S) as a plasticizer on mechanical properties, thermal properties, water resistance and surface roughness of sweet potato starch films were investigated.

Impact of Thyroid Function on the Prevalence and Mortality of Metabolic Dysfunction-Associated Fatty Liver Disease.

Context: Thyroid function variation within the thyroxine reference range has negative metabolic effects. Metabolic dysfunction-associated fatty liver disease (MAFLD) is a recently proposed definition.

Objective: We aim to explore the effects of thyroid function status on prevalence and mortality of MAFLD.